Columbia Asset Management Sells 631 Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Columbia Asset Management reduced its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,925 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 631 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 1.4% of Columbia Asset Management’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Columbia Asset Management’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $7,413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GOOG. Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet in the third quarter worth about $33,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, insider Ruth Porat sold 17,690 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.48, for a total value of $3,245,761.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,449,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $265,914,995.28. The trade was a 1.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 1,368 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.55, for a total value of $262,040.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 20,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,961,445.55. This trade represents a 6.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 88,665 shares of company stock valued at $16,198,310. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $158.88 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $179.89 and its 200 day moving average is $178.70. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.03. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $148.20 and a 1-year high of $208.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.03. Alphabet had a net margin of 28.60% and a return on equity of 32.49%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citizens Jmp cut Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Benchmark reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Alphabet from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.65.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets segments. The Google Services segment provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.